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Newscasts

PNS Daily Newscast - May 24, 2019

President Trump's reported to be ready to sign disaster relief bill without money for border security. Also on the Friday rundown: House bills would give millions a path to citizenship; and remembering California’s second-deadliest disaster.

Emily Beauregard, executive director of Kentucky Voices for Health, believes many factors are at play, including congressional efforts to shrink programs designed to help working families, which she said has created an "unwelcome mat" effect.

"It's really disheartening after so many years of making those gains in coverage," said Beauregard. "Between ACA sabotage and threats to roll back Medicaid coverage for adults, it's not surprising that some families are no longer enrolling in the benefits that they're eligible for."

In 2017, the Trump administration cut the budget for publicizing affordable coverage and hiring "navigators" to help explain the enrollment process for the Affordable Care Act.

States that expanded Medicaid, including Kentucky, fared better in the report than those that have not expanded their programs.

Joan Alker, executive director of the Georgetown Center and report co-author, said the research shows in families where parents have health insurance, kids are more likely to have it, too.

"Few things matter more than a healthy childhood. When children's health needs are met, they're better able to learn in school and their parents miss fewer days of work," Alker said. "We need to make sure that we redouble our efforts to continue years of bipartisan progress to reduce the number of uninsured children."

The report also cited Congress' trouble getting the Children's Health Insurance Program (CHIP) reauthorized last year. Alker hopes the one-year downturn doesn't become a trend.

"We're very concerned that this number is actually going to get worse," she warned. "Barring new and serious efforts to get back on track, there's every reason to believe this decline in the number of kids having health insurance may get worse in 2018."